The emperor keeps prepping and cooking more foods, and I just keep trying to brace myself for the pain I'm going to feel when I leave. Speaking of.
-Is there a way for me to set up a scrying thing so I can look out of my void anchor thingy?- While it's nice to have someone to play house with, a bro to chill out with, -- ooh! Can he drink? -- I need to find a way to get away.
-*Scrying is it's own thing,*- the emperor shrugs, going back to making a personal art installation fruit bowl. -*You have really good spirit awareness, but you're you. So while I'm surprised you haven't figured out how to do it already, I also know that you'll figure it out given enough time. Probably when you're eating someone's toenails or something...*-
-Talking about disgusting things at the table? You should be ashamed!- he flicks a peel at me and I eat it. Still not hungry and why does the peel taste different when it's off the fruit? -If I survive this can I get permission to go back to the swamp place and share a drink with Granin?-
-*If you survive this you still need to get your ass to the capital so we can work on your broken bullshit,*- the emperor grumbles back, managing to deny and dismiss my request while reminding me of how hard I fail at navigation. -*And we need those frozen corpse samples.*-
-I still don't know how you plan on training me, but is it really a good idea to get a reanimating puppet master anywhere near actual cultivators? He couldn't get me because I'm broken, right?-
-*Then we'll have to rely on your help,*- the emperor wide-eyes me before going back to his food crafting. -*Undergoes a spiritual tribulation and gets a person playing watchdog, then shit talks them! Go drinking in a forbidden seal? Pfft!*-
Oh, he said the areas were off limits, didn't he? And he didn't know how people found them or why they were sending students in as a test? Fodder? No. Pretty sure there were some families "no one would dare to offend" who sent their babies off for more things to tack onto their resume... And if they were sealed who opened them? Something he's probably going to have me trained to find out. Joy~. Actually. Might be helpful.
-More skills to abuse!- I crow, victory posed before another peel bounces off my face. I bite it out of the air, grooming and luxuriating in my silkiness. -The knight thing said it was a purifier, but all it did was make me smexier.-
-*Hmm?*- I watch as the emperor looks like he really wants to touch me. -*You dork.*-
-With hands!- I pause long enough to waggle my forelimbs at him. He snorts and keeps cooking.
-*So purifying doesn't work on you?*- He says super casually and not at all suspicious. -*Shush! Purifying just means saturating the area in an element for some people. You actually do a filter thing, which is obnoxiously rare.*-
I blink as I try to process this new nonsense. Dumping energy in an area, contaminating it, counts as purifying? Says who?!
-He also said he was going to cleanse the town and tried to make a super grenade. I banked it to eat it later,- I point out, the eye rolling before flopping to the ground. -Like you're surprised! Drama Queen!-
-*Just... Go out there and don't get killed!*- he sputters, the proxy floating again.
-Yes, mom! I'm going to Timmy's house!- I shift out, immediately get swatted, and I'm buried in the ground. -*Dear, Mom. Forgot my coat. Love, Sandy.*-
Now... Make him dig me out? Or dig the ground from under--. Nah, he big. The ground shifts around me while I'm processing that I'm not a pulpy mass. Hmm?
[Barrier Successful]
[Successful Use: 6/100]
[Qi -10]
[Karma -5]
[Aura Suppression Successful]
[Successful Use: 4/100]
[Con. Qi -100]
[Karma -1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,835,329/23,959,347]
[Current Qi: 695,936/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,837,388/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
I squeeze down my aura and plop my barrier around a bit of glowing shininess as I'm launched into the air. Dude just used his halberd as a shovel! Or was he trying to chop me and missed? Either way, still alive!
-*Whoo!*- I send to the trial giver and he flinches and slaps at his head. Do I sound like buzzing to him? -*I shall sing to you!*-
-Don't you fucking dare!- he shouts, getting his halberd in two hands then spinning it so fast it whistles.
-*Sweet, you're giving me a note to match! Don't think I can get that high...*- Fucking dog whistle shit! -*And I'm not a very good rapper...*-
He stops thrashing, staring at his halberd, before crushing the little bubble on the end.
[Barrier x6 Successful]
[Successful Use: 12/100]
[Qi -10 x6]
[Karma -5 x6]
[Aura Suppression Successful]
[Successful Use: 5/100]
[Con. Qi -100]
[Karma -1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,835,329/23,959,347]
[Current Qi: 695,936/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,837,388/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
I squeeze down my aura, plopping bubbles across his chest from his shoulder down to his hip, on the back of his hand, and on his foot. He screams, dancing and slapping them out of existence before swinging his halderd, two-handed, in something so ungraceful it has to be a temper tantrum.
[Barrier x6 Successful]
[Successful Use: 18/100]
[Qi -10 x6]
[Karma -5 x6]
[Aura Suppression Successful]
[Successful Use: 6/100]
[Con. Qi -100]
[Karma -1000]
[Greater Personal Transfer Successful]
[Successful Use: 27/100]
[Con. Qi -500]
[Qi -500]
[Karma 1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,834,529/23,958,832]
[Current Qi: 695,319/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,835,328/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
-You piece of shit! Die!-
-*I am dead. I'm haunting you! Can't you feel me nibbling at your fingies, sampling your lunch? You should wash your hands better!*- I snicker while attached to the bottom of his chin.
[Piercing Shot Successful]
[Successful Use: 24/100]
[Qi -30]
[Karma -5]
[Binding Sigil Successful]
[Successful Use: 4/100]
[Qi -50]
[Karma -5]
[Feeding]
[Successful Use: 8/100]
[Qi +10,000]
[Greater Personal Transfer Successful]
[Successful Use: 28/100]
[Con. Qi -500]
[Qi -500]
[Karma 1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,834,029/23,959,104]
[Current Qi: 704,739/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,836,418/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
He screams. I piercing shot his main eye, just the edge, then tried to form a tether with a binding shot versus trying to wrap it up, and then pulled by shifting with the tether attached to it and the firm belief that I wanted it. For eating later. I could try to find out about alchemy, and crafting, and so on, but... God eye snack.
I don't go very far, just to the middle of his back, and only because I don't think he can see me from here. Apparently I don't take the whole eye. Or even most of it. There's a small chunk, inside, that gets pulled through the outside, which tears like an egg instead of dumping eye jelly. Looks painful. From his screams this observation is accurate.
[Piercing Shot x3 Successful]
[Successful Use: 27/100]
[Qi -30 x3]
[Karma -5 x3]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,834,029/23,959,104]
[Current Qi: 704,739/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,836,418/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
I bank my little nugget, fire a shot at the top of his hairy left butt cheek, then rodeo climb my silky happy ass to the nape of his neck.
[Feeding Successful]
[Successful Use: 9/100]
[Qi + 10000]
[Karma 1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,834,029/23,959,125]
[Current Qi: 714,649/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,836,503/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
I tune out the world's shittiest brass band and settle in. Until he tears my line loose I kinda felt like a fisherman. Welp. Gotta cast again. Right butt cheek!
[Piercing Shot x3 Successful]
[Successful Use: 30/100]
[Qi -30 x3]
[Karma -5 x3]
[Feeding Successful]
[Successful Use: 10/100]
[Qi +10000]
[Karma 1000]
[Aura of Suppression Successful]
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
[Successful Use: 7/100]
[Qi -100]
[Karma -1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,833,929/23,958,897]
[Current Qi: 724,560/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,835,588/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
More screaming, more dancing, more thrashing. Teach a moth to kill, feed it for a day. Teach a moth to fish, feed it for a lifetime. But prepare it for a rodeo. Fack! He keeps breaking my lines and then going on a heebiejeebies dance spree. I keep getting the shots off just fine, he hasn't swatted me off yet, and he hasn't found me. But I can't get a good pull in. Unless he's trolling me for views. I feel my eyes narrow, rage building and I'm too pissed to congratulate myself on keeping myself squished down. ... Motherfucker...
Doing it for the cont., motherfucker? I stop throwing out lines and gently try to slip beside one of the frizzy braids. He appears to be unraveling, albeit slowly. How much soul flame do people at this level have? Or is it just will? How much will do I convert into 10k Qi? He stopped purifying, because he can't or because it doesn't work on me? 'Cause he really needs to get this shit under control. Looking raggedy!
I remember digging, and making little hidden hideouts, but that was dirt. This is hair. What would a head lice do? They go for the roots, right? I ignore the band, wonder if my silk is giving me grip more than my questing little not-quite fingies, and then try to figure out how to part the hair without telling on myself. Or can I just go around the braids like I originally wanted to?
It's so much harder trying to figure out where one ends and another begins now that he's all frayed and fluffy. Hmm... Kinda wanting him to do a few more of those pulses...
Speak of the devil! He's spamming them and smoothing his hair down! He limps over to a pile of rubble, there's a series of purifying blasts, then he sits down. What was rubble now looks likes like a satin covered bean bag. Hmm. He pulses and brushes his hair down, muttering about how disgusting this detail is -- Oh? So there's other jobs like this. Makes sense. -- before bitching and moaning about how he still doesn't know if I'm dead or not.
-How are you supposed to track down an insignificant insect? Why'd it even warrant a tribulation?-
... Bet. I stop being subtle and just go in. He's moving around a lot, so maybe he'll just think that I'm a tangled hair? I don't want to cut my way in, he's faster, but I can just push things aside and slip into the gaps made from his stretching and twisting, so I do.
I slip into a space between braids when he tilts his head forward, partially concerned that he figured out where I am, partially shitting on him for making the space for me, and then it's dark. Except for me. I'm glowing? The colors across my body, the essence scales, radiate light. And not a small amount, too. Whoo! I'm well fed! But why'd it get dark?
I keep digging in deeper, more pulses happening, but they don't come inside. It's like he pulses from his external aura and it has to soak in. Weird. Or maybe I'm weird for having my whole body connected the way it is. Meh. I get to see a faint hint of something shiny before I get further in. Is he getting dressed?
It doesn't take long, but I'm the worst judge of time, and I'm in a small chamber with a beautiful glowing crystal, heavenly by the look of it, floating vertically. It looks like the tutorial crystals rich, successful relative. Probably has a cheating spouse and some kind of compulsive disorder, but it looks nice.
-*Still haunting you,*- I remind the hair giant, shuffling up to the crystal inside of it. And I'm washed with spa energy. -* ♪ Thank you~... ♪ *-
Fack, I'm so saturated I'm glowing with the same energy. My scales still have their colors but my downy silk is looking like the shabby stalker of the crystal. I'm alight with "I can't afford this but I want you to think I can" energy. Pretty sure being inside of him doesn't make me safe.
[Aura of Suppression Successful]
[Successful Use: 8/100]
[Qi -100]
[Karma -1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,833,829/23,958,647]
[Current Qi: 724,561/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,834,588/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
I remember the whole "found you because you feel different" thing, but I'm not quite sure how people do it so casually. Probably the same way I snack on things. Reflex! Practice? Inclination. Hmm. No matter.
I reach out to grab the crystal then remember the emperor casually dropping the "you should have died" bomb on me. Maybe no touchy the soul flame with my hands? Piercing shot?
[Silk Spray (Tier 4) Successful]
[Successful Use: 27/100]
[Qi -200]
[Karma -2000]
[Feeding Successful x4]
[Successful Use: 14/100]
[Qi +10000 x4]
[Karma 1000 x4]
[Aura of Suppression Successful]
[Successful Use: 9/100]
[Qi -100]
[Karma -1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,833,529/23,957,997]
[Current Qi: 764,562/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,831,988/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
I don't even get to go "Whoo! Big suck!" before I'm sent to a literal spa. I think. Dunno. Never been to one. There's hot and cold mineral waters pools looking like cut geodes. Mineral waters. Plural. So many pools with different makeups. And I know this how? From sucking --.
I was slurping this bastard's soul flame. Through his will created crystal shielding? And now I'm in his soul space. Inside his soul flame. A soul palace like my void palace, but made by him instead of anyone who finds him unconscious. 'Cause it counts as spatial storage? Fucking. What. Is. This. World?!
The waters start roiling, hot tubbing with jets, and I pop in a pool to luxuriate and think.
[Feeding Successful]
[Successful Use: 15/100]
[Qi +10000]
[Karma 1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,833,529/23,958,022]
[Current Qi: 774,562/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,832,088/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
Mm. Soaking it up. There's a weird rhythm to the pulsing of the pools. They're almost synced, but not quite... I sit in the tub and continue to watch, waiting to see what happens. Surely he knows I'm in here?
[Feeding Successful]
[Successful Use: 16/100]
[Qi +10000]
[Karma 1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,833,529/23,958,047]
[Current Qi: 784,562/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,832,188/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
Can I cycle in here? Should I? Will it help me or hairzilla?
[Aura of Suppression Successful]
[Successful Use: 10/100]
[Con. Qi -100]
[Karma -1000]
[Current Condensed Qi: 1,833,429/23,957,797]
[Current Qi: 784,563/5,850,300]
[Current Karma: 95,831,188/107,275,977]
[Mortal Wallet: 10E,26K,228P,154R,179Da,155De,105k]
[Spirit Wallet: 0Dr,0Ph,0Th,1199Di,126Co,10526St]
Time to go 'splorin! Stealth mode and go! I hop out of the pool, body low to the ground, and freeze, against the ground, as a pretty boy wearing swim trunks sprints into the open. Da fuq?
Golden brown bakery hair in twists woven into what looks like an expensive, elaborate floral arrangement. Just hair art. That looks heavy as shit. But cultivator things? He stomps a foot, whips out a mirror, checks the space under his eyes for bags, the corners and his forehead for wrinkles, pats under his chin for a wattle?, then dips back into a mad sprinting search. What. The fuck?
Was he an idol or a wannabe? Or is he? I dunno. He could usually be tits until I came along and ruined his day. And his hair, gasp! But why's he look hunan in here? 'Cause it's his mindspace? How the fuck did I pop into his mindspace? I couldn't chill out in my own void space before I got it to physical levels. ... Is this at a physical level?
Pfft, what am I thinking? This dude's "leave the world and become a minor god"-tier. Pretty sure he's at physical mindspace levels. Or I'm not actually here. ... Can I drink the pools? No, wait! Collect them for my own spa! But I can drink them to store them.
A quick check on the frantic diva and he's still checking the space for... Moi? This area is white sands, which don't hold footprints, tan rock and blue pools. How does he not see me?
'Cause I'm saturated in his energy and he's not paying attention. Probably expects to see another person, and by person I mean hunan, but it's small, medium-sized dog me! I slink back to the pools, slipping into one, don't drown, and start guzzling.
When all the water is gone the geode pool spits me out then covers itself. Bish? I'm tempted to see if I can't eat it before the world goes understated flashy and expensive. Pearl and shades of pale gold everywhere.